Investigation into the use of satellite data in aiding characterization of particulate air quality in the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area

Poor air quality episodes occur often in metropolitan Atlanta, GA. The primary focus of this research is to assess the capability of satellites as a tool in characterizing air quality in Atlanta. Results indicate that intracity PM2.5 (particulate matter < or = 2.5 microm in aerodynamic diameter) concentrations show similar patterns as other U.S. urban areas, with the highest concentrations occurring within the city. PM2.5 and MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) aerosol optical depth (AOD) have higher values in the summer than spring, yet MODIS AOD doubles in the summer unlike PM2.5. Most (80%) of the Ozone Monitoring Instrument aerosol index (AI) is below 0.5 with little differences between spring and summer. Using this value as a constraint of the carbonaceous aerosol signal in the urban area, aerosol transport events such as wildfire smoke associated with higher positive AI values can be identified. The results indicate that MODIS AOD is well correlated with PM2.5 on a yearly and seasonal basis with correlation coefficients as high as 0.8 for Terra and 0.7 for Aqua. A possible alternative view of the PM2.5 and AOD relationship is seen through the use of AOD thresholds. These probabilistic thresholds provide a means to describe the air quality index (AQI) through the use of multiyear AOD records for a specific area. The National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) are used to classify the AOD into different AQI codes and probabilistically determine thresholds of AOD that represent most of a specific AQI category. For example, 80% of cases of moderate AQI days have AOD values between 0.5 and 0.6. The development of AOD thresholds provides a useful tool for evaluating air quality from the use of satellites in regions where there are sparse ground-based measurements of PM2.5.     

Efficacy of insurance for organisational disaster recovery: case study of the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes

Insurance is widely acknowledged to be an important component of an organisation's disaster preparedness and resilience. Yet, little analysis exists of how well current commercial insurance policies and practices support organisational recovery in the wake of a major disaster. This exploratory qualitative research, supported by some quantitative survey data, evaluated the efficacy of commercial insurance following the sequence of earthquakes in Canterbury, New Zealand, in 2010 and 2011. The study found that, generally, the commercial insurance sector performed adequately, given the complexity of the events. However, there are a number of ways in which insurers could improve their operations to increase the efficacy of commercial insurance cover and to assist organisational recovery following a disaster. The most notable of these are: (i) better wording of policies; (ii) the availability of sector‐specific policies; (iii) the enhancement of claims assessment systems; and (iv) risk‐based policy pricing to incentivise risk reduction measures.     

Solidarity Between Human and Non-Human Animals: Representing Animal Voices in Policy Deliberations

In this paper, we discuss the bridging potential of “interspecies” solidarity between the often incommensurable ethics of care and justice. Indeed, we show that the Environmental Communication literature emphasizes feelings of care and compassion as vectors of responsibility taking for animals. But we also show that a growing field of Political Animal Rights suggest that such responsibility taking should instead be grounded in universalizable terms of justice. Our argument is that a dual conception of solidarity can bridge this divide: On the one hand, solidarity as a pre-political relation with animals and, on the other hand, as a political practice based on open public deliberation of universalizable claims to justice; that is, claims to justice advanced by human proxy representatives of vulnerable non-humans. Such a dual conception can both challenge and validate NGOs’ claims to “speak on behalf of animals” in policy following the Aarhus Convention, indeed underwriting the Convention by insights from internatural communication in solidarity as relation, and by subjecting it to rational scrutiny in mini-publics in solidary as practice.     

Chemical and Biological Characterization of Products of Incomplete Combustion from the Simulated Field Burning of Agricultural Plastic

Chemical and biological analyses were performed to characterize products of Incomplete combustion emitted during the simulated open field burning of agricultural plastic. A small utility shed equipped with an air delivery system was used to simulate pile burning and forced-air-curtain incineration of a nonhalogenated agricultural plastic that reportedly consisted of polyethylene and carbon black. Emissions were analyzed for combustion gases; volatile, semi-volatile, and particulate organics; and toxic and mutagenlc properties. Emission samples, as well as samples of the used (possibly pesticide-contaminated) plastic, were analyzed for the presence of several pesticides to which the plastic may have been exposed. Although a variety of alkanes, alkenes, and aromatic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds were identified in the volatile, seml-volatlle, and particulate fractions of these emissions, a substantial fraction of higher molecular weight organic material was not identified. No pesticides were Identified in either combustion emission samples or dlchloromethane washes of the used plastic. When mutagenlcity was evaluated by exposing Salmonella bacteria (Ames assay) to whole vapor and vapor/partlculate emissions, no toxic or mutagenlc effects were observed. However, organic extracts of the particulate samples were moderately mutagenlc. This mutagenlcity compares approximately to that measured from residential wood heating on a revertant per unit heat release basis. Compared to pile burning, forced air slightly decreased the time necessary to burn a charge of plastic. There was not a substantial difference, however, in the variety or concentrations of organic compounds Identified In samples from these two burn conditions. This study highlights the benefits of a combined chemical/biological approach to the characterization of complex, multi-component combustion emissions. These results may not reflect those of other types of plastic that may be used for agricultural purposes, especially those containing halogens.     

Improvement of health risk factors after reduction of VOC concentrations in industrial and urban areas

After reductions of fugitive and diffuse emissions by an industrial complex, a follow-up study was performed to determine the time variability of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and the lifetime cancer risk (LCR). Passive samplers (3 M monitors) were placed outdoors (n?=?179) and indoors (n?=?75) in industrial, urban, and control areas for 4 weeks. Twenty-five compounds including n-alkanes, cycloalkanes, aromatics, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and terpenes were determined by GC/MS. The results show a significant decrease of all VOCs, especially in the industrial area and to a lesser extent in the urban area. The median outdoor concentration of benzene in the industrial area declined compared to the former study, around 85 % and about 50 % in the urban area, which in the past was strongly influenced by industrial emissions. Other carcinogenic compounds like styrene and tetrachloroethylene were reduced to approximately 60 %. VOC concentrations in control areas remained nearly unchanged. According to the determined BTEX ratios and interspecies correlations, in contrast to the previous study, traffic was identified as the main emission source in the urban and control areas and showed an increased influence in the industrial area. The LCR, calculated for benzene, styrene, and tetrachloroethylene, shows a decrease of one order of magnitude in accordance to the decreased total VOC concentrations and is now acceptable according to values proposed by the World Health Organization.     

Remediation of mould damaged building materials--efficiency of a broad spectrum of treatments

We compared the efficiency of some commercially available products and methods used for remediation of mould-contaminated building materials. Samples of gypsum board and pinewood were artificially contaminated with toxin-producing isolates of Stachybotrys chartarum and Aspergillus versicolor, respectively, then, ten different remediation treatments were applied according to the manufacturers' instructions. Microbial and chemical analyses of the infested materials were carried out both immediately before and after treatment, after six weeks of drying at room temperature, and after another six weeks of remoistening. The aim of the study was to determine whether the investigated methods could inhibit the mould growth and destroy some selected mycotoxins produced by the moulds. None of the decontamination methods tested could completely eliminate viable moulds. Some methods, especially boron based chemicals, ammonium based chemicals, and oxidation reduced the contents of mycotoxins produced by S. chartarum (satratoxin G and H, verrucarol), whereas the one which uses an ammonium based chemical reduced the amount of sterigmatocystin produced by A. versicolor with statistical significance. No remediation treatment eliminated all the toxins from the damaged materials. These results emphasize the importance to work preventively with moisture safety throughout the construction processes and management to prevent mould growth on building materials.     

Disaster waste management: a review article

Depending on their nature and severity, disasters can create large volumes of debris and waste. The waste can overwhelm existing solid waste management facilities and impact on other emergency response and recovery activities. If poorly managed, the waste can have significant environmental and public health impacts and can affect the overall recovery process.This paper presents a system overview of disaster waste management based on existing literature. The main literature available to date comprises disaster waste management plans or guidelines and isolated case studies. There is ample discussion on technical management options such as temporary storage sites, recycling, disposal, etc.; however, there is little or no guidance on how these various management options are selected post-disaster. The literature does not specifically address the impact or appropriateness of existing legislation, organisational structures and funding mechanisms on disaster waste management programmes, nor does it satisfactorily cover the social impact of disaster waste management programmes.It is envisaged that the discussion presented in this paper, and the literature gaps identified, will form a basis for future comprehensive and cohesive research on disaster waste management. In turn, research will lead to better preparedness and response to disaster waste management problems.     

Humic substances formation during poultry litter composting and its influence on the structural characteristics of the compost

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - This study aimed to elucidate the formation process of humic substances (HS) during poultry litter (PL) composting and its influence on the...     

Deep carbon degassing in the Matese massif chain (Southern Italy) inferred by geochemical and isotopic data

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The Italian Apennines are among the most important sources of freshwater for several Italian regions. With evidences of deep CO2-rich fluids intruding...     

A Food Handler-Associated, Foodborne Norovirus GII.4 Sydney 2012-Outbreak Following a Wedding Dinner, Austria, October 2012

On October 12, 2012, the provincial public health directorate of Salzburg reported a suspected norovirus (NV) outbreak among guests of a wedding–reception. The investigation aimed to confirm the causative agent, to identify the mode of transmission and to implement appropriate preventive measures. A probable outbreak case was defined as a wedding guest with diarrhoea or vomiting with disease onset from 7 to 10 October 2012 and who consumed food at the wedding dinner prepared by a hotel in the province Salzburg on 6 October 2012. A confirmed outbreak case fulfilled the criteria of a probable outbreak case and had a laboratory-confirmed NV infection. We conducted a cohort-investigation among the wedding guests. The case definitions were fulfilled in 26 wedding guests (25 %) including 2 confirmed cases. Females were 3.2 times more likely to develop disease (95 % CI 1.4–7.2) as compared to males. A mushroom dish was found to be associated with disease risk among females (risk ratio 2.3, 95 % CI 1.2–4.3). Two of 2 tested case-patients and 6 of 14 kitchen workers tested were positive for NV GII.4 Sydney. One kitchen staff-member worked during the wedding dinner despite diarrhoea. No food safety training was documented for the employees and the kitchen staff’s restroom was lacking operational facilities for hand hygiene. We report the first investigated outbreak due to GII.4 Sydney, which was likely due to a symptomatic kitchen worker. Gender-specific eating behaviour may have posed female guests at higher risk of NV infection.